Due to a nationwide shortage, the vaccine for yellow fever will only be administered to those who are traveling within 30 days.

Yellow Fever

What is yellow fever?

Yellow fever is a viral disease transmitted between
humans by the bite of an infective mosquito.

It is
characterized by:

Acute onset of fever

Hepatitis (inflammation of the liver)

Abuminuria (protein
in the urine)

followed by a brief remission, and then:

Recurrence of fever

Hepatitis

Albuminuria

In some instances:

Renal (kidney) failure

Shock

Generalized hemorrhages (bleeding)

Who gets yellow fever?

Yellow fever occurs only in the tropics.

In South
America sporadic infections occur almost exclusively
in forestry and agricultural workers from occupational exposure in or near forests.

In Africa,
the virus is transmitted in three regions:

In the
moist savanna zones of West and Central Africa during the rainy season

In urban locations and
villages

In jungle regions (not as often)

How is yellow fever spread?

Yellow fever is transmitted between humans by the
bite of an infective mosquito.

How soon after exposure do symptoms
appear?

Symptoms occur within 3-6 days after infection with
the virus.

How is yellow fever diagnosed?

Yellow fever is diagnosed by isolating the yellow
fever virus from tissues, blood, or other body fluid,
or, for those persons who have not been vaccinated,
by measuring specific antibodies in the blood.

What is the treatment for yellow fever?

There is no specific treatment for yellow fever, other
than supportive care.

How can yellow fever be prevented?

There are two actions travelers can take to avoid
yellow fever:

General precautions to avoid mosquito bites
should be followed by everyone.

The Division of Quarantine, National Center for
Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention has information on yellow fever and
other diseases of concern to travelers at http://www.cdc.gov/travel/index.htm.

This information is based on the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention’s Information on Yellow Fever sheet (last
updated 4/2/97).